


So Long as You Have Wheels...

by Charming Delinquent (Raven_Ehtar)



Category: LazyTown
Genre: Care Through Being a Pest, Concerned Friends, Friendship, Gen, Insomnia Pixel, Rare Characters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-26
Updated: 2018-06-26
Packaged: 2019-05-28 21:59:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15058694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raven_Ehtar/pseuds/Charming%20Delinquent
Summary: Pixel hasn't been out of his house - or his room - for a few days. Jives goes to check on him and to drag his butt outside, one way or another.





	So Long as You Have Wheels...

Pixel was fully absorbed in one of his games when someone knocked on his door. It was loud, and the kind of knock which was intent on letting whoever heard it know that the knocker fully intended to stand on the doorstep until they were let in. 

Pixel didn’t hear it. Even if his headphones hadn’t been pumping a musical mix straight into his ears, he was so deeply into his game that he wasn’t even aware of the room around him anymore. It was probably just as well that he wasn’t. It had been some time since Pixel had bothered to clean his room, to even clear out the dishes and trash that had been building up. Empty soda cans, fruit peels, chip bags, candy wrappers and other bits of evidence of slipping in his healthy eating lay around in drifts. He saw none of it, though, the screen taking up all of his attention. 

The knock came a second time, and a third, both with exactly the same kind of effect as the first, despite the escalating volume and insistence. 

Finally the knocker decided that since there was no answer coming, they would come in anyway. The door cracked open and a boy wearing a green knit cap stuck his head in the room. “Pixel! You awake or what?”

The room was dark and it took a moment for the newcomer to see where Pixel was sitting, as he still hadn’t noticed that someone was trying to get his attention. When the green capped boy finally spotted him, he huffed and rolled his eyes. Leaving the door open to cast a sliver of light into the Pixel-cave, the boy slouched in and stepped up behind the gamer. Without any ceremony, he dropped a heavy hand on Pixel’s shoulder. 

“Aahhh!”

Pixel jumped so hard he fell out of his chair and landed on the floor in a heap. He struggled with the narrow space and wires that had gotten tangled around him in the fall, trying to find his feet - or any definite part of his anatomy. 

“What- what- what’s going on? Who- what’s wrong-? _Jives?_ ” When he was finally able to see who it was that had snuck up on him he did not sound happy to see him. “What are you doing here?”

Jives’ brows rose, but he didn’t seem insulted. “Nice to see you, too, Pix. Really feeling the love, here.”

“Love nothing,” Pixel snapped, still struggling to get up from the floor while tangled up in a web of wires. “You know you’ve interrupted a campaign that I’ve sunk over hour hundred hours into? If you’ve ruined all that work, I’ll never forgive you!”

“What, this?” Jives squinted at the computer screen and the sets of complex graphs set over a background of some fantasy RPG. It didn’t make much sense to Jives, who had only ever watched Pixel play before, and had only ever really paid attention to the exciting parts. The actual workings of the game he had no idea of, nor had any interest in learning. That seemed dangerously close to work. “Nah, your guy’s fine. He just walking into a wall.”

Pixel’s struggles became a little less frantic, and like magic the wires loosened around him, making it possible for him to get up. Once he did and confirmed that he hadn’t lost over sixteen days worth of gaming effort, he sat down again, put the game in standby mode and looked up at his friend. “Well, I don’t have to smack you, I guess. Though I should for the scare you gave me. What’s up, Jives?”

Jives was looking around the room, his heavy eyes taking in the piles of dirty dishes and trash laying around the room. When he looked back at Pixel one brow was raised. “Do you know how long you’ve been cooped up in here? You’re becoming about as frequently spotted as bigfoot.”

“Pfft,” Pixel scoffed at him. “It hasn’t been _that_ long. I’ve just been concentrating on this new game. It’s leveling system is really complex and needs a lot of focus to get used to…”

“Days, Pix. You’ve been in here for _days._ The others are starting to get worried.”

Pixel stared at him. “No way. I can’t have been in here for days, I’ve only slept once…”

“And that means so much when it’s you,” Jives commented drily. “Check the calendar, you’ll see.”

Pixel did, turning to one of his many monitors to check the date. His heart sunk a little when he saw that, yes, three whole days had gone by since he had last gone outside. He’d gotten drawn so far into his game that he hadn’t even noticed how much time was going by. That wasn’t so strange, but this was the longest he had ever gone without surfacing. In fact, now that he’d stopped, he was starting to notice how tired he was, his eyes going heavy and itchy. He rubbed them a bit, and opened them just in time for Jives to tear open the window shades, letting in a flood of light. 

“Ack! Jives, jeez!”

“You’ve been cooped up in here for so long you’re starting to turn into a bat, dude. Plus…” he picked up an empty bag of vinegar and dill flavored chips. “What have you been eating while you’ve been in here?”

Pixel didn’t take his hand away from his eyes. “Oh, like you’re one to talk, Mr. Junkfood, the Cocoa Puffs addict.”

“Yeah, well, I’ve been getting better about that. I even ate a whole fish yesterday.”

“Good for you.”

“Anyway,” Jives went on, his voice going from the window back to him. “I came to make sure you were alive, and if you were, to drag you out to get some fresh air.”

“No way, Jives. I’ve been playing this game for days - apparently. I should be getting some sleep no… ooow.” A yawn interrupted him partway through, the tiredness hitting him hard once he’d been taken out of the game. 

“And you will,” Jives agrees. “But after you’ve spent a little time outside first, before you forget what fresh air smells like. We’re going to the park to skate.”

“Oh no, uh uh.” Pixel risked the light to peek out from between his fingers, glaring at his slouching, hooded friend. “I remember the last time you tried getting me to skateboard with you. My butt was sore for a week I fell off so much.”

Jives sniggered. “Yeah, well, they haven’t made a good butt helmet for clumsy computer geeks.”

Now Pixel took his hands away from his eyes. “I am _excellent_ on a skateboard, thank you very much. I just don’t do all those weird stunts you insist on doing. Ya nut.”

Jives grinned, taking it as a compliment. “You mean _awesome_ stunts, I think. but, considering your brain-boiled condition, I’ll not bother trying to teach you any today. Just come out, skate a little in the sun, and then come back to sleep. I might even drop by tomorrow to help you shovel out all of this trash.”

“No. Way. I refuse.”

Jives gave him a look. A look which Pixel didn’t like at all. 

He stepped forward, pulling something out of a back pocket. “Sorry, Pix. But you’re going outside, one way or another.”

* * *

It was a nice day in the park, and outside in general. Jives hadn’t spent much time in the little area for skating, warming up by going up and down the ramps, gaining speed as he went and adding the occasional twist, before some of the other kids started coming out to enjoy the day. 

It also didn’t take long for them to notice the second person in the park.

“Jives?” Stephanie pointed at Pixel, who was still sitting in his computer chair, held there with clear packing tape wrapped around him and the chair back. “What is Pixel doing taped to his chair?”

Jives looked. Pixel had done plenty of complaining at first, but eventually he had wound down as he realized that Jives wasn’t going to change his mind and undo the tape. “Looks like he’s sleeping,” he said.

Stephanie frowned, looking at Pixel, who was definitely asleep, snores and all. Trixie, decked out in helmet and in-line skates, snickered. “Don’t you think he’s… uncomfortable like that?”

“Nah. He’s got an umbrella to keep him out of the sun, he’s fine. He’s getting fresh air and sleep all at the same time.”

“I don’t know…”

“Aw, it’s fine, Pinky,” Trixie said, joining Jives at the ramp deck. “Look, he’s even prepared to join in if he wants to.” She pointed at the chair he was sitting in.

Jives grinned. “Yeah, anything with wheels, right?”

“Yeah!”

The two of them high-fived and laughed. Stephanie still didn’t look quite certain, but she joined in on the play soon enough, cycling round on her bike and occasionally trying the ramps. Pixel slept through all their clatter and laughter, and continued to dream even when Jives pushed him back home, undid the tape and helped him flop back into bed. 

Jives rolled his eyes as the snores got louder than ever, and reminded himself that he would have to check on him in the morning. Who knew what Pixel would get up to without someone responsible to watch over him.


End file.
